InSpiritry

For everything there is a season,
And a time for every purpose under heaven.
 Ecclesiastes 3:1

 It is time for another changing of the season here in Texas. This weekend, the trees are lofting their colorful leaves onto each breath of breeze.  This is the time of year that always gives me pause for reflection. Spring has its sense of urgency. Summer is full of activity. Even Winter brings holiday festivities. But Autumn? As Nature’s growth slows and we gather with family for Thanksgiving, Autumn seems to be the time of slowing down, of thinking things over and of assessing our lives and loves. (more…)

Jazz is the sound of God laughing.” Colleen Shadox

With a week of drenching rain finally over and an autumn chill in the sunny air, I decided to open all the windows this morning to celebrate the changing seasons. At my laptop, as I write this post, a gentle wind is dancing through the turning leaves and rustling the limbs. It is just enough to set singing our several sets of windchimes. Each one is tuned to a different pitch, and we have hung them in various spots around our yard. The result is that, on days like today, the air carries a veritable symphony of music: round-toned moans, cheerful harmonies, bright staccatos. Listening with my eyes closed for a minute, I feel moved to tears then to laughter then to peace.

A believer in prayer and worship as a constant condition, I realize that if the sound of my windchimes stirs my spirit, I am hearing sacred music! That idea sets me thinking about the many kinds of sacred sounds in the world we experience as holy, and every culture has its own beautiful traditions. (more…)

“There is sanctuary in being alone with nature.”    

Jonathan Lockwood Huie

When life swirls around us into a tornadic wind of uncertainty or trudges along dragging its heavy boots or orders us about with its responsibilities and expectations, it is important to have places that serve as sanctuary. This morning is a reminder that the place I live and write is both sanctuary and studio. Like Jonathan Lockwood Huie, I need time to be “alone with nature.” I am blessed that it is right outside my door.

I thought today I would invite you for a visit! (more…)

Spring!

It’s Easter weekend, the time when Christian congregations around the world commemorate Christ’s resurrection, the remembrance of the empty tomb where passionate women friends of Jesus discovered the fulfilment of prophecy. For modern Christians, Easter is the celebration of spiritual renewal and the hope of eternal life for those who believe.

For other Americans, it is a happy weekend of family gatherings,  Sunday lunches, children in brightly colored outfits and Easter egg hunts.

It’s also spring, the time when Nature’s message of renewal is just as passionate as Easter itself. Here in East Texas, green has miraculously returned to bare branches and sleeping sod. Flowers of every hue shout their songs of celebration and new life. Animals large and small seem reinvigorated for this season of procreation and birth.

While our human lives are often more driven by work deadlines, school assignments and family responsilibities, we would do well to affirm our natural selves this time of year, to find ways to use this month to experience resurrection, both spiritually and personally–embracing the idea of a new lease on life, a chance to start again, fresh beginnings, bright hope.

Think about your own life this Easter:

• With the long, cold months of winter over, what darkness do you need to leave behind?
• As the world blossoms with color, how can you experience celebration and creativity with those you love?
• While birds build nests and mother animals give birth, what can you do to insure our childrens’ future?
• As caterpillars are being transformed into butterflies, what relationships of yours need to be renewed?
• Now that plants and trees are growing again, what part of your life needs new attention and growth or even change?

Let’s celebrate Easter with all the joy it represents. Let’s welcome Spring and experience a time for renewal. Let’s use our lives for more than self-absorbed day-to-day living. Let’s be Passionate about the Future, working together towards the Greater Good!

 When We Experience Renewal,

We Can Be a Blessing!

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